Subaru Freeskiing World Tour Announces Chilean Stop

SALT LAKE CITY – July 7, 2011 – Following its first stop in Las Lenas, Argentina on August 9-12, the Subaru Freeskiing World Tour will head west across the Andes to Valle Nevado, Chile on August 18-21, 2011 for The North Face Chilean Freeskiing Championships, stop two of the 15th season. Big mountain freeskiing’s finest, including 2011 overall tour winners Drew Tabke and Angel Collinson, Chopo Diaz, Jess McMillan, and past tour champion Guerlain Chicherit, will compete on a rarely skied, out-of-bounds section of Valle Nevado’s Tambo venue in a two-day competition.

"Valle Nevado is thrilled to host the 2012 Subaru Freeskiing World Tour in Chile,” said Kristina Schreck, North American representative for Valle Nevado. “It's going to be very exciting to watch the best freeskiers in the world take on Tambo, our out-of-bounds, extreme terrain that we've specially designated as the venue for this awesome event."

The Subaru Freeskiing World Tour is the largest and longest running competitive big mountain freeskiing tour in the history of the sport, featuring athletes from all over the world and more than $110,000 in prize money. In 2012, Mountain Sports International will webcast select FWT stops live at www.freeskiingworldtour.com, and will again be producing their “Big Mountain Series,” which airs in the Northwest on Comcast Sportsnet. For more information, visit www.freeskiingworldtour.com or www.facebook.com/freeskiingworldtour.

Valle Nevado Ski Resort is located nearly 10,000 feet high in the Andes Mountains, just 1.5 hours from Santiago's airport (37 miles), offering quick and easy access for international travelers. The resort, established in 1988, offers its guests access to the largest skiable domain in South America and world-class heli-skiing deep in the Andes, for a total of more than 2,000 acres of terrain. Taken in conjunction with access to two neighboring local resorts, visitors can ski or ride nearly 7,000 acres. What sets Valle Nevado apart from US and European resorts is the tremendous amount of terrain but just 1/3 the crowds. Powder can last for days and there is rarely a lift line. This, taken in conjunction with a relaxed and sociable Latin American atmosphere, is the hallmark of a Valle Nevado ski experience. The 2011 season runs from June 10 to Oct. 7, giving northern hemisphere residents the chance to ski during the "summer vacation," and take the kids along. For more information, visit www.vallenevado.com.